The question is about the legality of performing worship...

The question is about the legality of performing worship acts on behalf of the dead and alive believers. Hence the Imam replied with further clarification and said ‘yes’ and then to stress on its recommended nature said: ‘on their behalf pay Sadaqah and pray’.

At that moment the Imam wanted to encourage further and said: ‘you will become eligible for other rewards’ and since he wanted to highlight the eligibility for reward he said, ‘as a result of your kindness to them and for joining relationships’. Thus this statement confirms the legality of this action and shows that it is lawful as well as recommended. Therefore, the respected reader is requested to think deeply on this point.

If kindness of one believer makes one eligible for divine rewards, what would be the position of one who gives Sadaqah on behalf of the Imam of the Time (aj)? Yes, he will be rewarded for that and be counted as the best of the Sadaqah-givers since he has performed this worship act on behalf of one who is the best in the whole world. And without any doubt the more perfect is the connection between him and the Holy Imam (as), the more will be the reward of giving Sadaqah on his behalf.

We pray to the Almighty Allah to bestow on us and all the believers love and devotion towards the Holy Imam (as) and opportunity to serve him; and Allah is the Hearer of Dua. That giving Sadaqah on behalf of the Imam is better than giving it on behalf of others can be proved from logic as well as a tradition from Tafseer Imam Hasan Askari (as) which we shall present ahead, Insha Allah.

📌Note and Guidance We should know that from the above mentioned traditional report of Abu Hamza it becomes clear that it is allowed to perform worship acts on behalf of believers, whether dead or alive, although the tradition has only spoken of Hajj, Sadaqah and prayer. The narrator only mentioned these three items as examples.

This can be proved by the following: Firstly: It is that when the Imam replied, he only mentioned Sadaqah and prayer and did not make any mention of Hajj, while on the basis of other traditional reports, Hajj on behalf of others is allowed and none of our scholars have doubted this matter. This shows that the Imam considered the three items as examples only.

✦ ✦ ✦